The Restraunt
by traffic cone dog
Summary: Sodapop Curtis's brothers have always had his back. Now they have his daughter's, too.
1. Burgers & News

So this is just something that I thought up and wrote within an hour. Future chapters will be longer, this is just somewhat of an introduction. :)

Now I have to go sort all these writing files into folders..haha..it's too late for this

* * *

 ** _1968_**

The restaurant is warm and smokey and Ponyboy traces his fingers around the rim of his glass, looking worried. Sickened.

Boy do I get it. Soda has promised to meet us here at 6. Said he had news. But by the look on his face when he told me, I couldn't tell what _kind_ of news.

He's 15 minutes late.

"What if he got drafted?" Pony asks me, almost in a whisper. My stomach twists. Ponyboy doesn't know that it's my worst fear, that I lay in bed at night and play out the possible scenarios in my head.

He's scratching his chin. There's a vague trace of a beard there. "Christ, what if _I_ got drafted and he found the letter?"

My eyes find my brother's. "You're too smart to get drafted."

He shakes his head, green eyes wide. "No I ain't." his eyes flick in their sockets, searching around the restaurant. It's a crowded night. "Nobody is."

See what I said about him being smart?

I see Soda's shadow weaving his way through the tables and I'm relieved. I can see it flush across Pony's face too. He slides over, making room for his brother in the booth.

Soda faces us, taking off his DX cap and swiping his hand through sweaty blond hair. He's here straight from work.

"Boy am I hungry," he booms, taking a long drink from Ponyboy's Pepsi without bothering to ask. My brother doesn't seem to mind, though.

His eyes meet mine. I don't miss the off-ness that's too obvious in them. I can't, after practically raising him for 4 years.

"You guys order yet?"

Frustrated, Ponyboy yanks his Pepsi back into his personal territory. "We did. Got you a burger, same as always. So don't you worry about anything."

Soda winces. "Christ Pony. I'm sorry I'm late. Wasn't my fault," a sort of dreamy look floated onto his face. "I got caught up. Had a...call to take at work."

I think he can sense that I was looking at him oddly so he clears his throat, banging his fist heavily on the table. Ponyboy jumps and the silverware rattles.

A disturbed couple sends us a dirty look. I put a hand up towards them in an apology.

"Soda," I hiss, leaning forwards. "What the hell is going on with you?"

"I'm nervous Darry," he admits. And I can tell, because he's smiling and looking on the verge of hysterical. "Real nervous."

It doesn't sit well. Ponyboy must've heard, because the worried look is back on his face. I see his hand go back to the rim of his glass.

"Well, don't keep us in suspense," he cracks dryly.

Soda rings his hands together. He's about to spill it when the waitress wheels up, carrying our three plates. I watch relief cross my brother's face.

That girl's eyes take a trip all over him. I take the plates quickly as she places them down, dismissing her with curt annoyance. "Thanks."

"Oh, you're very welcome," she's not looking at me though. Her gaze is locked on Soda. He shifts uncomfortably, offering a small wave when she leaves.

"Glory, was she checkin you out Soda," Ponyboy says with a grin. He tries to smile back but it's not hard to tell that it's false. That's Soda for you. An open book.

Restless, I clear my throat, wanting to get back to the subject of why Soda had dragged us all here in the first place. The whole restaurant is making me feel uncomfortable. We don't get out to eat much, I guess we aren't used to it. "So, Soda.."

His attention is snapped back. "Oh, right." his hands fold warily in front of him again. His burger is going untouched. He's jumpy, his knee bouncing against mine is shaking the table. I wonder what the hell it is he has to tell us.

"You know that girl I've been goin out with, Virginia?"

I let out a breath of relief. Girl problems, I can deal with.

Of course I know Virginia. She and Soda have been going steady for almost a year now.

I was happy when my brother found her. She sort of snapped him out of his Sandy-trance, put him back into reality. But there was always something about her that I thought was off. Not bad, just off.

Maybe it was that my brother loved her so damn much it made me feel weird. He'd told me about loving Sandy but I'd never fully listened, understood. He'd wanted to marry her. He never got the chance.

Now here it was happening again, right in front of my face. I guess I was wondering what sort of road this woman would steer my brother down.

I just nod, and realize that my food hasn't been looked at either. Neither has Ponyboy's. I wish Soda would just spit out what he had to say, get it over with.

"She's a real nice girl, Dar," Soda tells me in a rushed voice, looking sick. I bite my lip, not already liking where this is going. "You know that. I mean hell, she practically cooks for us." he grins, lopsided.

"What is it, Soda," I grunt. Pony is staring at Soda like he's a timed bomb, ready to go off.

"She's gonna have a baby," he practically whispers. "My baby." his eyes meet mine, and I know we're both thinking the same thing. Last time.

"I know it for sure. It's mine. Not...someone else's." he hisses with resentment.

My mind is foggy. Ponyboy is gaping at Soda. Food completely forgotten, Soda's eyes dart wildly between the two of us. He's looking like he's gonna cry, and knowing him, it's probably what's coming up next.

"Soda-" Pony starts, voice hoarse.

"I'm sorry," escapes Soda's mouth, wet. He pushes himself up from the table. His head narrowly misses the light hanging above us. "So sorry."

And next thing I'm aware of, he's halfway through the room, charging past tables to the bathroom.

* * *

If you read this far, THANK YOU! Pleeease review, I really just want to know if you enjoyed it:) And tell me what I should do to continue! (vague musings are also welcome)

Hinton owns.


	2. Let Off Easy

New chapter! Just an FYI...these will not be going in chronological order. They will be somewhat just one-shots.

I'm trying out all different writing styles for this. So bare with me..it's a little all over the place. But hopefully interesting.

* * *

 _ **The Thing About Virginia**_

She's beautiful. Her hair is the kind if blonde that doesn't come out of a bottle poured over a bathroom sink. It's wavy and you like to run your fingers through it, feel how they flow straight through without snagging.

Her chin and her nose are pointed and she says that she hates it. She wishes they were more rounded, like Grace Kelly's.

You insist to her that Grace Kelly has nothing on Virginia Spencer. She tuts, calls you nothing but a flirt.

You inform her that your Mother has taught you well. You never tell a lie.

She is an expert at knowing you. It's one of the reasons you love her so much. _So much._ She listens when you talk and she knows what to say and when to be quiet.

And you tell her things you don't even know you know.

About how Ponyboy is going to college and you're _so_ proud of him but you're worried Darry's sad about it. Even though it's what he pushed for so long. Jealous. His work with your brother is done and now he's bored.

And she just gets it.

Her mother is dead. So is yours, but hers has been gone for longer. The way she tells it, when she was 4, her mom got too sick to live so God just took her out of mercy.

You don't tell her that you don't think it makes sense. It's too simple to be real. That if that were true your parents would be alive, and _both_ your smart-as-hell brothers would be going to college without having to to take turns or whatever the hell they had planned.

And you feel guilty because you got let off easy when it came to them.

Even if there hadn't been an accident you would've ended up out of school and at the DX one way or another.

But Darry could've been something else. Something other than a roofer. And Pony wouldn't have those weights on his shoulders. That he was ripping going to college from right under his brothers feet.

You tell Virgina that, too. It just spills out when you're in the bed together and your hands are in that hair you love so much.

You let her know about your brother, who roofs rich people's houses all day only to come home and swallow a few aspirin cause his back is killing him.

And she replies with something Darry has told you a thousand times. But it's different coming from her.

"He was happier than he'll ever be right with you and your brother," she explains, gentle and calming. It just about makes you melt. "Cause if it were any other way he wouldn't be able to stand it. Cause Darry's.." she sighs, and it's soothing. God you love her _so much._ "Darry's a good guy, y'know?"

You know.

Darry's a good guy in both the sense that he'll pay up if he loses to you when he's shooting pool, and that he'll basically adopt his two orphan brothers the day after his parents are brutally killed in a car wreck. The thought of Darry, what he has done, makes you shudder.

And of course Virginia can make you see that.

Pony likes Virginia because they sort of think the same way. Maybe that's why you can talk to her so easy, cause it's like talking to your kid brother. But sexy.

And of course, there's the fact that you can't help but smile whenever you see her. Boy is she beautiful.

You're so lucky. Because for someone who got off so easy, you don't deserve her.

* * *

 _ **News Broken**_

She waits for him, worrying. Her doctor had told her not to worry like that, that she could make herself sick if she did.

So she tries to calm herself down. For the baby.

Come to think of it, maybe it's the baby swimming around in her stomach causing her to be like this. She tilts her head up and faces herself in the vanity mirror. Her too-pointy chin and the dark circles under her eyes stare back at her.

 _It's Soda's. It's Soda's._

Of course it has to be Soda's. She'll be lucky if she's been face to face with another boy since she started dating him. Besides her father and the one who brought the check to their table on their last date.

 _Dating._ God, she's still dating him. And now she made him a father.

She drops her face into her hand, ashamed. A ring from her mom hits her forehead.

Despite herself she smiles. Cause Soda's gonna make a great dad. She sees the way he talks to his little brother.

She had gone to the last track meet. He's a star runner, that kid, and Soda knows it. She had grinned when he clapped his hand over his Ponyboy's shoulder. He was her's.

For now. Her mouth goes dry. What was he going to tell his brothers? She could tear them apart. Ruin their family. After all they had done to fix it..

She hears the front door clatter shut and sticks her hands in the pockets of her pedal pushers, sweating.

By the sound and the quickness of the shoes on the hardwood floor she can tell it's him. It has to be him. She's bracing herself, sucking in her breath and preparing for the worst.

His head pops into the room. Soda is smiling, but he can't hide from her the fact that he's worried about why he's been called here.

Virginia feels guilty. She hates making him worry, cause he's such a happy guy, but sadness looks like it belongs on his face.

"Hey, babe."

He sits down next to her. The bed creaks with his weight. She feels his arm around her, pressing her shoulders against his. She breaths into him. "I'm sorry."

"For what?" Soda is looking at her, trying to act casual, and she's embarrassed. She knows what he's thinking about. That other girl, Sandy. The one who had someone else's kid.

She reaches up to feel her nose and sniffs. She can't let him be worried for too long. God knows what's running through his head. She pulls herself together for the sake of Soda.

Might as well just spit it out. "I'm pregnant," she tells him. It comes out snotty and wet.

"Oh, God."

Soda's arm uncoils from around her. The bed rises as he stands up, leaning on her dresser. "How—"

"You know how, Soda," she breaths, trying to contain her patience with him. It's uncoiling, whipping around the spool. "I'm sorry. I'm _sorry."_

She can't look at him. Her face is burning, everything is numb. She wants to cry but she can't. It wouldn't be good for the baby.

She feels herself, spinning out of control. Nothing is good for the baby.

"It's mine?" Soda turns around to face her. God, he looks hot right now. His hair isn't greased back. It's sticking up off his forehead, wheat-colored and slicked with nervous sweat. She hopes their kid looks like him.

She frowns. "Of course it's yours." She hates Sandy, making him think otherwise. She takes a shuddery breath. Her heart beats, ragged. "It couldn't—I wouldn't—"

"Oh, good lord," Soda is looking at her now. He's shaking, and she can't tell if he's laughing or not. But he sure is smiling. "Didja hear that? I'm gonna be a dad."

 _A dad._ Next thing she knows she's smiling back at him. Her vision swirls. He's going to raise a kid with her. She's getting dizzy, thinking about everything that needs to get done. They need to buy clothes for the kid. They have to get married.

Her breath hitches. She loves him.

"And you're gonna be a damn good one."

* * *

I'm not a fan of the style at the end. But tell me what you think.

Please review! I seriously appreciate so much to hear what you have to say :)


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